City planning staff presented a package of 12 proposed amendments to the City of Tampa Land Development Code, covering review hearings and appeal procedures, garage and driveway standards, alternative design review, site plan minimums for design exceptions, tree protection, buffers, and equipment elevation requirements in flood zones.

Emily Phelan briefed the commission on the items and paused for commissioner questions after each topic. Highlights included a new standard that would require certain single‑family residential garage/carport setbacks (an 18‑foot setback from the property line for garages/carports or vehicular storage areas) and minimum interior garage depth where an interior garage counts toward a lot's parking, and new language requiring hard‑surface driveways (concrete or specified permeable pavers). The package also standardizes alternative design exception process and requires public notice for all such requests, requires arborist reports for grand‑tree removal, removes a code provision that allowed setback reductions to preserve trees (replacing it with variance or design exception processes), and creates standards for air‑conditioning, pool equipment and on‑site generator platforms in flood zones.

Commissioners raised implementation and legal questions. Commissioner Seeben questioned whether driveway, garage‑size and material standards could be viewed as "more restrictive or burdensome" under recently enacted state law (Senate Bill 180) and asked whether staff had evaluated the amendments against that statute. Dana Crosby of the City Attorney's Office said the city is evaluating SB180 and will present findings; she confirmed the city is reviewing the whole package on a case‑by‑case basis and will return with legal analysis during the Planning Commission review. Evan Johnson, planning staff, explained the garage and parking language was intended to make covered parking usable for counting toward required parking and to reduce vehicles parked in the public right‑of‑way and on sidewalks.

Phelan and staff said the package will return to the planning commission on Aug. 11 for individual consideration and vote on each amendment and then proceed to City Council. No formal action was taken at the briefing.